Web-based applications are becoming more and more common. One type of web-based application is applications that reside on a server and which are accessed as a service using a web-browser executed on a client device. Such web-based applications are sometimes referred to as hosted web applications. Another type of web-based applications is applications that are downloaded and installed into the web-browser on the client device. Such web-based applications are sometimes referred to as packaged applications.
The line between conventional applications and web-based applications is beginning to blur significantly, particularly with the deployment of HTML5. Using HTML5 and an appropriate browser, a developer can deliver to a user full-fidelity applications with services that previously were only available from installed applications (i.e., locally stored data and application code having local access to devices). Accordingly, application delivery is shifting from a download/install mechanism to a web browser distributed mechanism.
Today, mobile applications for mobile computing platforms are typically monetized via a marketplace, where users are charged a fee before downloading and installing an application. This mechanism is usually tied to the mobile platform itself, which provides the marketplace application and connects to a back-end service where payment is made and the application is distributed. With web-based applications, however, such a marketplace process is not readily available. As a consequence, the individual application providers are left to provide for themselves the key marketplace services of monetization, reputation building, advertising, and so on. Such application providers usually have to tie directly into another service to collect a fee for the use of their web-based applications, which then eliminates the key marketplace advantages of a unified, easy billing mechanism for users as well as billing alternatives such as mobile operator billing.